The Surrender Tree: Poems of Cuba's Struggle for Freedom

Margarita Engle

Henry Holt and Company (BYR), Apr 1, 2008 - Juvenile Nonfiction - 169 pages

It is 1896. Cuba has fought three wars for independence and still is not free. People have been rounded up in reconcentration camps with too little food and too much illness. Rosa is a nurse, but she dares not go to the camps. So she turns hidden caves into hospitals for those who know how to find her.

Black, white, Cuban, Spanish—Rosa does her best for everyone. Yet who can heal a country so torn apart by war? Acclaimed poet Margarita Engle has created another breathtaking portrait of Cuba. The Surrender Tree is a 2009 Newbery Honor Book, the winner of the 2009 Pura Belpre Medal for Narrative and the 2009 Bank Street - Claudia Lewis Award, and a 2009 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.

What people are saying

Review: The Surrender Tree: Poems of Cuba's Struggle for Freedom

User Review  - Patricia Mutai - Goodreads

Known as a novel-in verse, Margarita Engle tells the story of Cuba's past and its presents in her book using many strong captivating voices. Broken into four sections, the book focuses on Cuba's ...

Review: The Surrender Tree: Poems of Cuba's Struggle for Freedom

User Review  - Annie Combest-friedman - Goodreads

I really enjoyed reading this book because it brought multiple perspectives to a situation I was not very informed about. Free verse was used to quickly display the story. Each page either has a new ...

About the author

Margarita Engle is a Cuban American poet, novelist, and journalist whose work has been published in many countries. She is the author of young adult nonfiction books and novels in verse including The Poet Slave of Cuba, Hurricane Dancers, The Firefly Letters, and Tropical Secrets. The Surrender Tree was a Newbery Honor Book. She lives in northern California.

Bibliographic information

• Title: The Surrender Tree: Poems of Cuba's Struggle for Freedom; Engle, Margarita
• Author: Margarita Engle
• Publisher: Henry Holt and Company (BYR), 2008
• ISBN: 0805086749, 9780805086744
• Length: 169 pages
• Subjects: Juvenile Nonfiction / Biography & Autobiography / Historical; Juvenile Nonfiction / History / Central & South America; Juvenile Nonfiction / History / Other; Juvenile Nonfiction / People & Places / Caribbean & Latin America; Juvenile Nonfiction / Poetry / General; Juvenile Nonfiction / Social Issues / Prejudice & Racism